"It looks like they won't be making a move tonight."
The round-faced girl sighed helplessly and pushed open a hidden trapdoor—one that left Tales utterly astonished. The cheers from within nearly drowned out her voice:
"Of course, that's assuming you—the famous walking disaster—don't cause any trouble."
Walking disaster...
Tales's face twitched.
But...
"Do you have any other proof?"
Tales drew a deep breath, hid his shock, and followed her into the bustling banquet hall.
"Who's your superior? I—I can't just believe you so easily..."
"Proof?" The girl's expression changed. She said coldly, "How many people do you think know what you know in this city? No, in the entire kingdom? How many people know about the mission His Majesty gave you? Should he send a minister of the royal court to inform you while carrying an imperial decree, banging gongs, and holding up a giant megaphone?"
His Majesty's mission.
Tales's heart shuddered.
Damn it.
"But this is just too..." Tales stared unblinkingly at the indifferent round-faced girl. "So you're actually the king's secret agent, a mole we planted in Emerald City—"
But the girl did not answer. She simply kept walking into the crowd. Tales had no choice but to do his best to keep up.
"Welcome, my friends who have come from afar and waited so long for this moment!"
Jian Cavendil's voice came from the center of the banquet hall. Because he was standing on the second floor, his voice rang out even more powerfully than usual. It interrupted Tales and drew the attention of every guest.
Almost every guest.
Gritting his teeth, Tales followed the girl in front of him as she forced her way through the bustling crowd, all the way to a corner beside the wall.
No. He had to get a clear answer.
He